Kristaps Porzingis Tears ACL

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February 7, 2018 8:18 AM

Kristaps Porzingis, the New York Knicks’ All-Star forward, is out for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Three minutes into the second quarter of the Knicks’ 103-89 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, Porzingis dunked on Giannis Antetokounmpo.

As Porzingis came down, he stepped on Antetokounmpo’s foot and his ankle buckled. He grabbed at his left knee after he hit the ground and needed to be helped off the court.

Coach Jeff Hornacek confirmed after the game that Porzingis had a magnetic resonance imaging exam, and the Knicks announced on Twitter that he had torn the ACL, which will keep him out indefinitely.

Losing the 22-year-old Porzingis is a catastrophic development for the Knicks, who were rebuilding around him after a breakup with their longtime star, Carmelo Anthony, before this season. Porzingis, a 7-foot-3 forward from Latvia, has thrived as the team’s centerpiece, averaging 22.9 points, 6.7 rebounds and a league-leading 2.4 blocks a game this season. Often called a unicorn for his unusual combination of skills, Porzingis makes 39.2 percent of his 3-point attempts despite being tied with Boban Marjanovic of the Los Angeles Clippers for the distinction of being the NBA’s tallest active player.

While Porzingis, who was selected fourth overall in the 2015 NBA draft, had come into this season with some questions about the durability of his wiry frame — he sat out 26 games combined across his first two seasons — he started 48 of the team’s first 55 games, matching his career-high average of 32.8 minutes a game.

The Cleveland Cavaliers’ Dwyane Wade noted on Twitter that Porzingis was one of several high-profile players who had been sidelined by season-ending injuries, a list that includes DeMarcus Cousins of the New Orleans Pelicans, Gordon Hayward of the Boston Celtics and Jeremy Lin of the Nets. John Wall of the Washington Wizards and Kevin Love of the Cavaliers are also out with serious injuries, although they are expected to return this season.

The Knicks (23-32) have lost 11 of their last 15 games.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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